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Sanae Ishida

A crafty little atelier in a grey city

To be Shiny

November 5, 2014

Last week, when I shared the Hudson pants, I was surprised by the number of people who commented on how harsh I was being about my (let's face it), um, strong calves and other body parts. Of course, I appreciated how kind and encouraging the commenters were being, so I've done some thinking about that since then, prompted also by a conversation I had with K a few days ago. Here's how the conversation went: K: Mama, when you were a kid, did you have certain characteristics that you thought you ... Read more

Filed in: gouache, illustration • by sanae • 29 Comments

Happy Friday + Randomness

October 31, 2014

Happy Friday! I'm dragging my feet on the girl-transforming-into-werewolf costume for K and my pleas for her to wear the ninja costume tonight are falling on deaf ears. I obviously need to re-evaluate who's the boss here. ************************* A random comment on the age-old game of tag by K: I'm not that into being "it" these days. I'm totally over it. ************************* Alright, I better see if I can muster the energy to focus on assembling faux fur...Have a great ... Read more

Filed in: gouache, illustration, watercolor • by sanae • 4 Comments

Happy Friday + Randomness

October 24, 2014

Happy Friday! This little illustration is totally random, but these little kimono girls make me happy. I hope you've had a wonderful week, and are gearing up for a fun weekend. I'm keeping it sweet and short today since a certain 8-year-old wants me to sew up a rather involved Halloween costume. ************************************* K on adolescence: Mama, I hope I'm the kind of teenager that likes her parents...I hear teenagers are really ... Read more

Filed in: gouache, illustration • by sanae • 12 Comments

Happy Friday + Randomness

October 10, 2014

Happy Friday! "Mama?" K asked the other day, "How is it that I have both your DNA and Daddy's DNA? I don't get it." I gulped. At her eight-year wellness check during the summer, our pediatrician warned me that the questions will start. Not MY little girl, I thought smugly, I still have all the time in the world. But here we are, just two months after the warning, and K has been peppering me with some variation of this question almost every day. So I ordered a book recommended by the ... Read more

Filed in: illustration, life, watercolor • by sanae • 24 Comments

2014 Fall Sewing Plans

October 8, 2014

It's like clockwork. The frenetic start of the school year eases into a predictable routine, the air tingles with promises of cozy sweater weather, and then, M or K comes home with a cold and BAM, I'm laid flat on my back, sniffling and coughing up a lung. Due to my wimpy immune system, even the mildest cold tends to hit me hard. I'm determined to not get sucked into the illness vortex this time (last year I was fighting one ailment after another from November to February), so I've been ... Read more

Filed in: black and white, illustration • by sanae • 14 Comments

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I’ve been swimming in nostalgia these past few day I’ve been swimming in nostalgia these past few days, wading through my blog and Pinterest board of the clothes I made for K, who is not so little anymore. what a wild, fun time that was! Remember the old school days of sewing blogs?? I’m back in deadline mode for a number of projects so sewing will have to be put on hold (though maybe I’ll get lucky and sneak in some stitching time). I’m also putting Instagram on hold for the summer, as I do every year. I’ll be back in September with some exciting updates! Have a lovely season, my friends! 💙💙💙💙💙💙
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